In a speech told in the course of the 19th century, De Gaulle insisted on the importance of the Franco-German unity after three wars between both countries. The first one was the Franco-Prussian war which occurred in 1870-1871. From this war emerged the new German Empire and the French 3rd Republic. This war had a major impact for both countries.

What was Germany before? It was a confederation of States/principalities (excluding the South German part). There was an economic union and Prussia was becoming a dominant power. Germany did not exist, it was only an idea. There were particularly huge differences in terms of culture. The process of German unification was a liberal one, especially because Prussia and other German states had been liberated from Napoleonic domination. It was top-down unification. Liberals were on the left wing at this time. There were military alliances between German states and Prussia. These alliances facilitated the process of unification.